KR20210141996A - Dishwasher device and method - Google Patents

Abstract

A dishwashing apparatus includes a housing including a series of zones, each zone configured to perform a step of a dishwashing cycle. The drive means transport the shuttle loaded with contaminated articles in a loop from the loading/unloading area at the top of the housing, into the housing, through each of said wash-step areas and back to the loading/unloading area. Different types of shuttles are provided, each type configured to transport one of: individual items of plates, individual items of cups, or individual individual sets of cutlery. A method for washing dishes using the apparatus is described. The device is compact to be installed flush with the kitchen counter adjacent to the kitchen sink. The apparatus and method enable rapid and efficient washing of a small number of items, such as one individual set of dishes.

Description

Dishwasher device and method

The present invention relates to automated cleaning of kitchen appliances. More particularly, the present invention relates to a dishwashing apparatus and method for washing dishes/dishware.

Dishwasher machines, ie machines for washing dishes and others, have been available since the 1950's, but these devices are mostly of the same type and construction, ie having a chamber in which soiled articles are struck with water and detergent.

Household dishwashers currently available are most effective and efficient when used to wash a full load, which can represent a significant number of items. Such machines are not suitable for cleaning a small number of items, such as items made from small meals or snacks for one or two persons. Therefore, most users wait for the machine to be full and operate the machine once a day or once every few days when full. While the dishwasher is being filled, the soiled article dries, and thus the soiling material dries on the article, making it more difficult to wash later, or mold develops, resulting in an unsightly and unsanitary mess. To alleviate this disadvantage, it is possible to pre-rinse the contaminated articles prior to loading, but this additional manual step is inconvenient and tends to obliterate the advantages of having a dishwasher in the first place.

Household dishwashing machines are usually installed under a kitchen counter with a front-facing door hinged at the bottom. Consequently, loading and unloading the machine provides an open door below knee height and requires the user to bend, an inconvenient and potentially hazardous process.

Dishwasher washing machines for commercial applications such as restaurants and cafeterias use continuous conveyors to transport items to be washed through several washing steps. For example, GB 1023772 A (Thring) describes a dish washing machine in which objects to be washed are loaded into loose baskets which are conveyed through a downward washing operation and an upward drying operation. Each basket has a mesh side and tray bottom to accommodate the charge of various dishes, tools and cutlery. DE 476329 C1 (Gustav) describes a dish washing machine in which a hanging bowl basket is transported through a pre-wash container and a spray chamber. A pivoting movement is transmitted to the bowl basket so that the water spray jet can impinge on all parts of the dishes placed within the bowl basket. GB 190921745 A (Jones) describes a machine for washing dishes in which the plates are fixed in a holder attached to a conveyor that transports the plates through a tank of water and past a rotating brush. These machines are too large, complex, and expensive for home use.

There is still a need for a fully automated dishwashing machine that is small, economical, easy to use, and capable of quickly and efficiently washing a small number of items such as plates, cups and cutlery.

Glossary of terms

For a clear understanding of the present invention, certain terms used in the following description are defined as follows:

"Cupware" means cups, glasses, and the like. Such terminology is not intended to be limited to any particular style or category of beverage container. A reference to a cup shall be considered to include a glass and vice versa.

"Knife" includes cutlery items such as knives, forks, and cutlery, as well as hand-held kitchen tools such as peelers, crushers, whisks, and the like. Unless the context excludes, references to cutlery should be considered to include tools and vice versa.

"Freedom" is synonymous with cups.

"Place-setting". The cutlery individual tableware set refers to one or more items of cutlery used by one person during a meal, and may include cutlery items generally placed or set on a table for one person's meal. Additional configurations of individual tableware sets may vary depending on meals served/eat, but generally include knives, forks, and cutlery. Supplementary items may be placed for dinner. Snacks may involve the use of fewer cutlery items.

"Dishware" means plates, bowls, and the like. Unless the context excludes, reference to a plate should be considered to include any article of plate type.

"Dishware" includes plates, cups, and cutlery.

Accordingly, in a first aspect, the present invention provides a dish washing apparatus, the dish washing apparatus comprising:

a housing comprising a series of zones, each zone configured to perform a step of a dishwashing cycle;

loading/unloading area at the top of the housing;

A plurality of shuttles for receiving and transporting contaminated articles, comprising:

a set of dishware shuttles, each configured to receive and transport an individual dishware article;

a set of cutlery shuttles, each configured to receive and transport an individual individual set of cutlery and/or tools;

a plurality of shuttles arranged in sets, including a set of cuplike shuttles, each configured to receive and transport a respective cuplike article; and

drive means for transporting a shuttle loaded with contaminated articles from an in loop loading/unloading area into the housing, through each wash-stage area, and back to the loading/unloading area out of the housing, each drive means, operable to transport the shuttles from one set of shuttles independently of the shuttles from the other set of shuttles.

Such a device is a fully automated, all-in-one dish washing device.

In one embodiment, the housing includes a washing zone, a rinsing zone, and a drying zone. The housing may further include a sanitation zone.

The undesired transfer of washing and rinsing liquid, or dry air between the zones is therefore avoided so that the delivery of the cleaning and rinsing liquid and dry air to each wash-step zone is sufficiently localized within each zone. , the device may be configured to be prevented or limited to a level that does not interfere with the performance of the dishwashing cycle. This is accomplished by delivering cleaning and rinsing liquid and dry air to the spray nozzles, the angle and pressure of the spray nozzles in each zone being configured to minimize cross-contamination between the wash-step zones.

Alternatively, each wash-step zone within the housing may be divided from adjacent zones by a physical partition, thereby allowing a loaded shuttle to pass from one zone to the next, between zones. may restrict the delivery of cleaning and rinsing liquids, or dry air, in the An example of a suitable compartment is a plastic strip curtain. In case the wash-stage zone is divided by compartments, these may be referred to as wash-stage chambers.

A plurality of shuttles or carriers are arranged or arranged in sets or groups, each set comprising a plurality of similar shuttles each configured to receive and transport individual items of a category of contaminated tableware. Thus, a dishwashing apparatus may include a set of shuttles, cutlery and/or tools (eg, forks/spooners/knifes, and other kitchenware) each configured to receive individual items of cutlery (eg, plates, bowls, and others). a set of shuttles each configured to receive an individual individual set of cutlery (such as cutlery items, such as tools), and a set of shuttles each configured to receive glassware and/or cups.

The apparatus consists of shuttles of a similar type arranged in rows, ie each set of shuttles comprises one row. In one embodiment, the apparatus comprises three rows of shuttles, a row of platen shuttles, a row of cutlery shuttles, and a row of glassware/cup shuttles, each row a separate item of contaminated tableware of a different category: yes For example, a suitably designed shuttle to accommodate one plate, one individual set of cutlery (ie, one or several items of cutlery), or one glass.

The device is slow, wasteful of energy and detergent, without a) waiting for the washing chamber of a typical under-counter kitchen dishwasher to be filled, which may have a capacity for dozens or more individual dish sets, or b) It is configured to immediately, quickly and efficiently wash small soiled dishes made by one person at a time, without running a conventional dishwashing machine with only a few items inside. Shuttles configured to receive and transport single items and specifically for plates, cups and cutlery/tools allow the apparatus to efficiently clean only a few items in quick wash cycles. The dish and cup shuttle is configured to receive and transport one individual item, eg, a dish and cup, respectively. The cutlery/tool shuttle is one or more items of cutlery, e.g., one or more selected from knives, forks and cutlery, which can be used (ie, soiled) by one person at a time in one meal or snack. Goods can be transported.

In another embodiment, the housing comprises an entry flap for entry of the shuttle and an exit flap for exit of the shuttle.

The shuttles from each set of shuttles may be operated to be transported through the apparatus independently of the shuttles from each set. This can be achieved by providing an independent drive means for each set of shuttles. In one embodiment, the drive means comprises a pair of track assemblies, each assembly comprising a rack and pinion drive mechanism, wherein the pinion is interposed between a movable rack in the form of a loop and a fixed rack that is not a complete loop. do.

The disclosed apparatus can be used in one single dishwashing machine as needed, without the need to accumulate enough articles to fill a large wash chamber for optimization of the resources (energy, water, detergent, time) required to operate a wash cycle in a conventional dishwashing machine. or to quickly clean several soiled articles.

A shuttle specifically configured to accommodate one of the plates/dishware, cutlery, and cups/glasses is convenient for loading and cleaning one or several table-specific cutlery sets at a time.

Since each set of shuttles can be driven independently, the apparatus can be configured for different dishwashing needs or cases. For example, if a person ate a bowl of soup from his meal and did not drink a drink, the bowl and cutlery could be loaded into the platen shuttle and cutlery shuttle respectively and driven through the housing for a wash cycle while , the cup-like shuttle may be omitted from the cycle. When a person ate a sandwich with his soup, the sandwich plate can be delivered through a wash on a second dish shuttle. Similarly, where two people are dining together, a second set of personalized dishes may be washed, followed by additional sorting of shuttles delivered through the wash cycle, and the like.

The device described herein may be installed on a countertop next to a kitchen sink. In another embodiment, the device is to be installed within a kitchen counter, at a location similar to the drain of a conventional sink/drain arrangement, such that the loading/unloading area of the housing top is substantially flush with the kitchen countertop. can The device receives, within a short time, the contaminated article/articles, dropping them into the housing, washing, rinsing, sanitizing, drying and returning the stacked article back to a ready-to-reuse condition.

A simple drive mechanism carries the shuttle in a continuous circuit that starts and ends at a loading/unloading area on the top of the device housing, allowing multiple articles to be processed at short intervals. Disadvantages of the prior art associated with pre-rinsing, bending, waiting for a full load, waiting until cycle completion to allow the article to be reused are avoided. Dirty items such as kitchen sinks or countertops are similarly prevented, resulting in a clean and tidy kitchen.

In a further aspect, the present invention provides a method for washing tableware, the method comprising:

loading the items of contaminated tableware into a shuttle located within a loading/unloading area at the top of the housing of the dishwasher, the shuttle being selected from a group of available shuttle types, the group being configured to: comprising: a cutlery shuttle configured to receive an individual cutlery individual set of cutlery, and a cupware shuttle configured to receive an individual cuplike article;

conveying the loaded shuttle through a series of zones contained within the housing, each zone configured to perform a step of a dishwashing cycle, whereby the soiled article undergoes a full wash cycle;

transporting the loaded shuttle out of the housing and returning it to the loading/unloading area;

Each type of shuttle is carried through the housing independently of each type of shuttle.

As used herein, "cutlery" means any item generally included in a table personal set, i.e., plates, bowls, cutlery, and any used (and thus soiled) during a meal, such as cups and glasses. includes goods. Also included therein are articles used in the preparation and serving of meals. Accordingly, such a term is synonymous with the general term "dish" as used in the phrase "washing dishes" and in the term "dishwasher" itself.

For example, an embodiment of the present invention will now be described with reference to the drawings.
1 is a view showing a top view of a dish washing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 2 is a view showing a side view of the dish washing apparatus of FIG. 1 with the front panel removed to show the internal components;
FIG. 3 is a top view of the dish washing apparatus of FIG. 1 with the rack shuttle removed to expose the upper drain arrangement;
Fig. 4 is a side view showing the drive mechanism and components for transporting the shuttle through the apparatus of Fig. 1;
Fig. 5 is a top view of the internal drain pan and additional components of the apparatus of Fig. 1;

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Embodiments of the present invention will now be described, by way of example, with reference to the accompanying drawings.

Referring to FIG. 1 , the device 100 is installed next to a kitchen sink 10 with the upper end of the housing, including the loading/unloading area, flush with the kitchen counter 11 . Apparatus 100 comprises three separate rows of shuttles: a row of dishware shuttles 1 each made into a shape capable of receiving and holding typical dishware; rows of cutlery shuttles 2 each configured to receive one or several typical cutlery articles; and a row of cup-like shuttles 3 each configured to receive a typical stemware/cup. Each shuttle is supported by a transverse mandrel having a sprocket-type gear at each end which lies within its respective track, so that the shuttles 1, 2, 3 can be moved independently through the device.

Each of the shuttles 1, 2, 3, when loaded with soiled articles, moves downward into the housing through the respective entry flaps 4, 5, 6 and through successive wash-step zones, It exits the housing via the exit flaps (7, 8, 9).

2, as each individual shuttle 1, 2, 3 enters the housing via the entry flaps 4, 5, 6, they travel and process through four distinct zones. .

The first zone is a cleaning zone 17 that applies a cleaning cycle as the shuttle moves through the zone. From several movable or stationary jet spray nozzles 13 positioned at different points and aimed at the contaminated item/articles, dish soap, stored on board in dish soap tank 39 , is sprayed onto the item.

The second zone is the rinse zone 18, which sprays rinse water onto the article from several movable or stationary jet spray nozzles 14 located at different points and aimed at the soiled article/articles.

The third zone is a sanitizing zone for sanitizing articles by spraying heated water or steam from several movable or stationary jet spray nozzles 15 located at different points and aimed at the article/articles being sanitized. (19).

The last zone is a drying zone 20 which directs heated or cold air onto the article from several movable or stationary air nozzles 16 located at different points and aimed at the article/articles to be dried. .

The drain tub 21 located at the lower end of the device not only serves as a receiving unit for water and debris, but also houses a motor, dish soap tank, water heater, steam generator, and valve, power source, controller, etc. A drain trap 22 is provided for collection.

As shown in FIG. 3 , the upper bottom 23 of the device located below the shuttle serves the additional role as a drain, such that the upper floor allows waste and liquids to pass through this area and into the housing and This is because it allows the drain to be drained downward into the drain tub 21 below. This arrangement allows for easy cleaning that can rinse the entire shuttle rack area using a kitchen faucet.

In order to keep this surface clean, several spray nozzles 24 are positioned throughout this area.

The drive mechanism and components are shown in FIG. 4 . A simple drive mechanism consists of a pair of track assemblies, each track assembly comprising a rack and pinion type drive mechanism, whereby the pinion 26 is formed by a single rack 30, stationary or fixed, and a movable A drive rack or chain 25 is interposed between two racks. The direction of movement of the movable or drive chain 25 indicated by the arrow 41 determines the direction of movement of the shuttles 1 , 2 , 3 indicated by the arrow 42 .

The drive chain is again driven by a reversible AC or DC electric motor 29 with a worm gear 28 for braking purposes. A sprocket or tensioning device 27 is used to grip the drive chain and move it along a designated track 25 .

The stationary track 30 does not create a complete loop, but ends for the shuttle moving portion 31 . This allows the shuttles to be racked 32 together at the top of the device and remain in place even when the drive chain moves. This results in each shuttle moving independently of each other.

5 shows a drain pan with additional internal components. A drain pan 21 receives all liquids and waste for disposal through the device and into the city's sewage system. A trap (33) for solids is provided, so that the liquid flows into the drain (34).

Other components include drive motors 35 , 36 , 37 , water heater/steam generator 38 , dish soap tank 39 , power source 41 , and controller 40 .

The operation of the disclosed apparatus will now be described.

Each of the shuttles 1, 2, 3 is provided with a pair of tracks, such a pair of tracks that the shuttles 1, 2, 3 can be used in any combination for four process cycles: cleaning, rinsing, sanitizing and drying. to be transported through each of the No user intervention in all of this.

Each row of shuttles 1, 2, 3 operates independently of the other rows and shuttles, thereby allowing each work item to proceed through the device independently of the other, thus providing an "as needed" operation. make it possible

A grill in the upper floor 23 under all shuttles 1 , 2 , 3 allows debris to flow through the device and into the lower drain pan 21 inside the device.

When a soiled article is placed within that particular shuttle receptacle 1, 2, or 3, the shuttle descends into the housing and begins to progress through the wash-step zone.

Entry flaps 4, 5, 6 for each row allow shuttles 1, 2, 3 to enter the device.

Washing Step 1: As the shuttles 1, 2, 3 move through the washing zone 17, dishwashing soap flows from the spray nozzles 13 located below the grill as well as the bottom of the zone to the shuttles 1, 2, 3) It is sprayed on the work (contaminated article) inside.

Washing Step 2: As the shuttles 1, 2, 3 continue to move through the device, the shuttle enters the rinse zone 18 and the second cycle begins, where fresh clean water is provided under the grill as well as at the bottom of the zone. It is sprayed onto the workpiece in the shuttle from another spray nozzle 14 located at

Cleaning Phase 3: As the shuttles 1, 2, 3 continue to move through the device, the shuttle enters the sanitization zone 19 and the third stage cycle begins, where heated water or steam is sanitized It is sprayed onto the surface of the workpiece in the shuttle as a stage.

Washing Step 4: As the shuttles 1, 2, 3 continue to move through the device, the shuttle enters the drying zone 20 and the fourth and final stage of the drying cycle begins, in which hot air or ambient Air is blown over the surface of the workpiece in the shuttle as a drying and cooling process.

At this point, the shuttles 1, 2, 3 continue to move back to the top surface of the device via the exit flaps 7, 8, 9, where the shuttles 1, 2, 3 are free to roll and slide out of the housing. Stacked behind each other shuttle on the exposed top end (loading/unloading area), ready for unloading and reuse.

Claims (7)

Dishwasher is a dishwasher:
a housing comprising a series of zones, each zone configured to perform a step of a dishwashing cycle;
loading/unloading area at the top of the housing;
A plurality of shuttles for receiving and transporting contaminated articles, the shuttles arranged in rows, each row comprising a different type of shuttle than the other rows, the rows comprising:
rows of dishware shuttles, each configured to receive and transport individual dishware items;
rows of cutlery shuttles, each configured to receive and transport an individual individual set of cutlery and/or tools;
a plurality of shuttles comprising rows of cuplike shuttles, each configured to receive and transport individual cuplike articles; and
drive means for transporting a shuttle loaded with soiled articles in a loop from the loading/unloading area into the housing, through each wash-step area and back out of the housing to the loading/unloading area, each drive means, operable to transport shuttles from one row of shuttles independently of shuttles from another set of shuttles in According to claim 1,
wherein the housing includes a washing zone, a rinsing zone, and a drying zone. 3. The method of claim 2,
wherein the housing further comprises a sanitation zone. 4. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 3,
wherein each zone is separated from an adjacent zone by a physical barrier, the barrier configured to allow passage of a shuttle. 5. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 4,
wherein the housing comprises an entry flap for entry of the shuttle and an exit flap for exit of the shuttle. 6. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 5,
wherein the drive means comprises a pair of track assemblies, each assembly comprising a rack and pinion drive mechanism, wherein the pinion is interposed between a movable rack in the form of a loop and a fixed rack that is not a complete loop. Here's how to wash your dishes:
loading contaminated tableware items into a shuttle located within a loading/unloading area at the top of a housing of a dishwasher, the shuttle selected from a group of available shuttle types, the group comprising: receiving individual dishware items comprising: a dishware shuttle configured to serve, a cutlery shuttle configured to receive individual sets of cutlery, and a cupware shuttle configured to receive individual cuplike articles;
conveying the loaded shuttle through a series of zones contained within the housing, each zone configured to perform a step of a dishwashing cycle, whereby the soiled article undergoes a full wash cycle;
transporting the loaded shuttle out of the housing and returning it to the loading/unloading area;
wherein each type of shuttle is carried through the housing independently of each type of shuttle.

Images